I'm on Page 194 of Jon Lee Anderson's excellent biography of Ernesto "Che" Guevara, and it is the Cubans, already led by Fidel Castro, who are giving Che his nickname, which means "hey, you," or something like that, in Spanish. I think of it like we say "buddy" to a guy we hardly know.
Ernesto has a "girlfriend," Hilda, whom he is using for sex and as a source of borrowed money. He says in his journals, "too bad she is so ugly," but he is having sex with her because he needs a woman for that. In other words, he doesn't care about her, he only cares about himself.
Well, he is not the first man to do that. But it is not what I would call honorable.
Now, in the book, he is in Mexico, training for the Cuban revolution, along with about 40 Cubanos. He climbs mountains and goes to the gym and trains in firearms and hand-to-hand combat. He wins the respect of the other men who recognize him as a leader.
But it is hard to reconcile a man who wants to help others with the same man who is taking advantage of a woman who loves him.
He is becoming good friends with Fidel, and they are getting ready to attack Batista in Cuba.
I am learning a lot about Che. I don't particularly like him, as a man. He seems narcissistic, a person who only values himself, and everything he does for others he really does for himself, so he will look good in his own eyes.
But there is no doubt that he was charming and intelligent, and possessed leadership qualities and great talents. And he was making history. For better or for worse. Or both.
-- Roger
© Copyright 2011, Roger R. Angle
No comments:
Post a Comment